BY DAN

Matty Nicholson and Sav Tamale will return for the Raiders in the coming weeks.

This is good news for anyone who has tasted the sweet nectar of Lime Milk (mmm tastes like Terry Campese). When they departed both were proving themselves immensely valuable. Tamale was a world-beater on the edge. When he went dark he was leading the league in tackle breaks and line breaks. Nicholson only came into one of the hardest jobs on the field and was smashing it out of the park.

Both will be in the 17 in some form as soon as they’re available. Tamale has a pretty straightforward return to the wing spot currently occupied by Jedediah Stuart. It be most welcome. That’s not a criticism of Stuart. He’s performed beyond our wildest dreams, improving each week. He’s handled the weight of noise that comes with being the coach’s son, and turned that into a string of performances that prove he’s a capable first grader.

Tamale, not to Stuart’s denigration, is just a different beast. He’s a chance to be one of the competition’s elite outside backs in the coming years. In addition to the fancy stuff, his yardage work is so important for the Raiders, giving metres and momentum to sets and allowing more rest for returning middles.

This is what the Milk have missed the most. He can finish on the edge, he can beat his man on a whim. But in addition to all this, he could use these abilities to get Canberra out of trouble. Tamale has 93 tackle busts through 14 games, burning up metres by being impossible to get down. For reference that makes him 11th in the league, despite having played a third less games than the rest of the competition – basically at the same rate as league leader James Tedesco (per Fox Stats).

Nicholson’s return is more complex. He was reportedly coming back through cup this weekend but that has been pushed back a week – he won’t return until the game against Souths the same weekend the first string side are playing Penrith. The fact the club has held him back an additional week speaks to how serious his injury was, and the importance of taking their time getting him back to full speed. One would presume his ankle injury would put the risk in his lateral agility. That wasn’t necessarily his strength (boy howdy those lines), but it’s a critical part of why he’s got a 93 per cent tackle efficiency on the edge.

It will be interesting to see his pathway back from there. That’ll be determined by two connected factors. The first is the fact that the side has been able to handle his absence, largely due to the play of Zac Hosking in starting at right edge, and Simi Sasagi’s ability to finish in the position. The second will be Nicholson’s fitness, and ability to get through decent minutes in Cup footy. The Raiders won’t necessarily be expecting him to be able to get through 80 minutes on the edge. They have Hosking and Sasagi after all, and that will allow them to build those minutes over time.

In the end though Canberra will want Nicholson as a near 80 minute backrower by the time the finals come around. They gain so much advantage from being able to bring players like Hosking and Sasagi off the bench, up the pace while also adjusting for every eventuality they might find in finals footy. It doesn’t hurt that Nicholson also have proven effective in so many ways.

That’s only exacerbated by the return of Tamale, who’s yardage work gives further rest to the middles, ensuring they can utilise their energy more efficiency. This only increases the sound clap that can come from the Raiders middle rotation, at its biggest and baddest, and most importantly fastest.

Getting reinforcements at this time of the year is a luxury. So many teams are just struggling to get their best 17 together. The Raiders will be (hopefully) waltzing into the finals fully fit for the first time since round 10. And it could make a helluva difference.

Do me a favour and like the page on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, or share this on social media because love is true and heaven is a Raiders victory. Don’t hesitate to send us feedback (dan@sportress.org) or comment below if you think we are stupid. Or if we’re not.